1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a seat for a vehicle, particularly, an automobile which is equipped with a seatbelt system.
2. Description of the Related Art
A typical conventional seat for an automobile consists of a seat back for supporting the back of an occupant and a seat cushion for supporting his buttocks and thereby allows the occupant to seat himself therein.
Seatbelt systems which are mounted on automobiles are generally designed to restrain the body of an occupant with a webbing so that he is protected in an emergency situation of the vehicle. One type of such seatbelt system is known as an automatic seatbelt system in which a webbing is automatically fastened to the occupant's body.
This type of seatbelt system is arranged such that, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, a webbing retractor 11 is secured to a floor member disposed in the center of a vehicle, and the distal end portion of a webbing 13 unwound from the retractor 11 is moved in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle in response to the operation of opening and closing the door, thereby allowing the intermediate portion of the webbing 13 to be automatically fastened to the body of an occupant seated in a seat 15. The intermediate portion of the webbing 13 is supported by a belt guide 17 which is secured to the side of the seat 15 which is closer to the center of the vehicle so that the occupant seated in the seat 15 is maintained in a constant or uniform webbing fastened condition regardless of his changing the position of the seat 15.
The belt guide 17 is pivotally supported by the seat 15 so that, when the direction of pull of the webbing 13 is changed as the door is opened or closed, the belt guide 17 is pivoted in response to the change in the webbing pulling direction, thereby minimizing the frictional resistance occurring between the webbing 13 and the belt guide 17.
However, when the occupant closes the door after leaving the vehicle, the webbing 13 is wound up into the retractor 11 while changing the direction in which it is pulled, and the belt guide 17 is pivoted as shown by the arrow A in FIG. 5. In consequence, the webbing 13 gradually approaches and finally contacts the seat cushion 15A of the seat 15, so that the webbing 13 is wound up into the retractor 11 while rubbing against the seat cushion 15A, resulting in damages to the webbing 13 and the seat cushion 15A. In addition, the friction occurring between the webbing 13 and the seat cushion 15A may cause the webbing 13 to be defectively wound up into the retractor 11.
When the occupant opens the door in order to enter the vehicle, the webbing 13 and the belt guide 17 are activated in the reverse direction to that in the case of closing the door, and the webbing 13 is unwound from the retractor 11 while rubbing against the seat cushion 15A. Therefore, the webbing 13 and the seat cushion 15A may be damaged in the same way as the above. Further, the friction occurring between the webbing 13 and the seat cushion 15A disadvantageously increases the force required for opening the door.
These problems may be solved by installing the belt guide 17 at a position apart upward from the seat cushion 15A. In such case, however, the belt guide 17 may project to the side of the occupant's waist to a substantial degree in such a manner as to obstruct the movement of the occupant.